Pack notes: Deonte Burton struggles against Boise State's double-team

BOISE, Idaho – Wolf Pack point guard Deonte Burton has almost single-handedly won games by himself during his three-year career at Nevada.

But, in the team’s second cycle through the Mountain West, opponents are making sure he can’t do just that. Over the past few games, teams have double-teamed Burton like never before.

“I have guys telling me at the beginning of games, ‘You’re not going to get it. The other guys have to beat us,’” Burton said after Nevada’s 73-47 loss to Boise State on Wednesday. “I have to find those guys, but sometimes it’s hard when you’re getting trapped on all ball screens. It’s been tough.”

The tone was set early in the loss to Boise State when the Broncos double-teamed Burton on ball screens, forcing him to give the ball up. Burton scored a team-high 13 points, but he made just 2-of-9 field goals, with both makes being long-range threes late in the blowout.

Over the past four games, Burton has averaged just 12.5 points per game on 15-of-41 shooting (36.6 percent). He’s had nearly as many turnovers (13) as field goals (15) in that span.

After scoring at least 19 points in nine of his first 17 games, he’s reached that mark just once in the past 10 games, mostly because defenses are doing everything they can to slow him down.

“They’re double-teaming him,” Wolf Pack coach David Carter said. “They’re not playing him man-to-man and when they hedge against him they’re not getting back. They’re staying on him. That’s affecting him. Other guys have to step up and he has to find the guys who are rolling.”

Burton said he has to review film to figure out how to beat the double team. After all, teams aren’t going to change the formula on how to beat Nevada, which has struggled offensively in MWC play.

“I have to do a better job of finding the holes and finding the breakdowns and getting guys the ball in good positions,” said Burton, who was held without an assist against Boise State.

Carter said it’s incumbent upon the team’s role players to make some plays to take pressure off Burton. The team has struggled to find a consistent scorer outside of Burton and Malik Story.

“When he kicks it out, guys have to chip in,” Carter said. “These are games where somebody has to step up. They have to say, ‘If you’re going to take away my teammate, I’ll make plays and I’ll make you pay for it.’ We didn’t make them pay for it.”

Story, who scored eight points on 3-of-10 shooting, also has seen his share of double teams. Against Boise State, he tried to force the issue and had six turnovers.

“They’re making the other guys make plays,” Story said. “That’s all they’re doing to us right now.”

PACK’S TRANSITION GAME TAMED

In Nevada’s first game against Boise State, a 75-59 win, the Wolf Pack held a 16-2 edge in transition points, which was the key to one of its best wins of the season.

On Wednesday, the Wolf Pack was held scoreless in the transition game. Part of the issue was Nevada’s inability to rebound the ball. The team allowed 14 offensive rebounds and couldn’t get its transition game going. Boise State also was focused on halting Burton’s fastbreak chances.

“Transition, that’s what they killed us on last game,” Broncos guard Anthony Drmic said. “Last game there was stretch where Burton hit like eight straight, just driving to the rim and getting layups. That was the game plan, and we stuck to it, held them to two points or zero points in transition.”

THAT REBOUNDING EDGE

Boise State is one of the MWC’s smallest teams, starting four guards. Yet, it has still found a way to be an above-average rebounding team. Against Nevada, it held a 37-21 edge on the boards.

“It’s just our emphasis, all the time, is rebounding, because we’re not very gifted rebounding-wise, and we have to really, really emphasize it,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said. “We can’t let our thumb off it, ever.”

The Broncos’ 14 offensive rebounds led to a 17-2 edge in second-chance points.

“Long shot, long rebounds,” Carter said. “They were able to run down long rebounds. We watched the ball bounce over our heads and didn’t pursue the ball. We talked about that before the game, about us having to be the quickest player to the ball, but they were.”

LAYUPS

The Wolf Pack fell to 39-22 all-time against Boise State. … Nevada fell to 2-10 on the road; Boise State improved to 12-1 at home. … Jerry Evans Jr. suffered an ankle sprain in the first half, but still played 24 minutes. He had one point, three rebounds and two steals before fouling out and wore an ice pack on his ankle while exiting the arena. … The Wolf Pack’s next game is Saturday against UNLV at Lawlor Events Center.

When you only have to guard two guys it changes your defensive scheme. No one else has shown the ability to score for Nevada, no one! So just double Story and Burton and you should beat Nevada with relative ease.

About this blog

Longtime RGJ Media reporter Dan Hinxman is the authority on Wolf Pack athletics, bringing you the day-to-day coverage of Nevada’s sports teams. Dan has covered almost everything the Northern Nevada sports scene has to offer and will use his knowledge to bring you authoritative and engaging Wolf Pack content. Follow him on Twitter at @DanHinxmanRGJ.